Life of a King is the unlikely true story of Eugene Brown and his one-man mission to give inner-city kids of Washington D.C. something he never had - a future. He discovered a multitude of life lessons through the game of chess during his 18-year incarceration for bank robbery. After his release and reentry into the workforce, Eugene developed and founded the Big Chair Chess Club to get kids off the streets and working towards lives they never believed they were capable of due to circumstances. From his daring introductory chess lessons to group of unruly high school students in detention to the development of the Club and the teens' first local chess competitions, this movie reveals his difficult, inspirational journey and how he changed the lives of a group of teens with no endgame.

In chess, like in real life, one frequently faces temptations: to grab a pawn, to occupy an open file, to start a kingside attack and so on. There is nothing fundamentally wrong with all these ideas, but before undertaking such concrete actions, one should be sure the position is ripe for it. The second DVD deals with the middlegame positions where static factors play a determining part, permanently taking into account the inseparable dynamic and tactical elements. The videos are interactive, featuring training questions in the critical moments. You can further sharpen your skills with the included database, which contains games covering themes that correspond to the ideas presented on the DVD.

Want to improve at chess? Then you'll need to improve your understanding of chess strategy. You probably knew that already - but how to begin to study such a vast and seemingly complex subject? International Master Adam Hunt is a full-time chess teacher and is thus very familiar with this problem. His solution is to present an accessible and easy-to-read guide for club players and juniors. Hunt studies all the key components of chess strategy, including development, king safety, attack and defence, initiative, pawn play and much more. He examines not only grandmaster games but also those played by students, demonstrates model strategic play, identifies typical mistakes and explains how to avoid them. Move by Move provides an ideal platform to study chess

Bryan takes us through various strategies for using Pawns in your game. Illustrated with real games the lectures cover topes of : Pawns In the attack, Petrosian's Pawn Artistry, Doubled Pawns and Weak Squares, Break the Rules Sometimes, Breaking Through the Pawn Chain.

How should systematic chess coaching be structured so that students are able to use their freshly acquired knowledge in their own games? Author Stefan Becker came to an astonishingly simple answer. The solution to every chess problem lies on the board.

To win games against strong players you need an extra set of skills to the usual attacking ideas. There are many careful players who will close the position or passively defend until you try something too optimistic, giving away material or making a concession which eventually allows them to win. Incredibly frustrating! To beat these guys you need to master the art of positional chess and that is exactly what GM Damian Lemos helps you achieve in “Positional Mastery”. By studying the textbook examples in this Course you will learn how to constantly ask questions of your opponent, forcing them to solve subtle problems until they make a mistake and you win.

CHESSDVDS.COM IN SPANISH - FOXY OPENINGS #86 - Dynamics of Strategy and How to Create a Plan - VOL. 2

Catalog Code: DVD0002ES

All the Basic tactical ideas are discussed fully, followed by a series of very recent illustrative games, where we will see all that ideas in action . On this dvd you will gain confidence in your ability to handle tactics when they crop up over the board and who knows, you may be able to land some tactical knockouts yourself!

Dynamic Chess Strategy - 2016 Edition! New Edition of a Modern Classic

Catalog Code: B0167NIC

Grandmaster Mihai Suba, a former Romanian champion and Senior World Chess Champion, has updated his groundbreaking work and extended it with even more entertaining and witty lessons. The result is a thought-provoking and yet practical guide on chess strategy!

Samuel Reshevsky is the ideal person to write a book on positional play because that was exactly the way he played: positionally. Reshevsky preferred to crush his opponents slowly, like a python, rather than to win with a blaze of tactics.

Nimzowitsch will always be remembered as the founder of the Hypermodern movement and the author of the undisputed classics My System and Chess Praxis. In his first book, he expounded his theories of prophylaxis, blockades and much more, while providing ground-breaking insights in pawn-structures. In the sequel Nimzowitsch demonstrated how he had successfully tested his theories in his games.

NM Dana Mackenzie started playing tournament chess during the ''Fischer boom'' of 1971-1972 and never quit. Champion of North Carolina in 1985, 1987, and became master in 1988. He has a 1-0 career record against world chess champions.

The DVD is divided into 4 parts and is presented by FM Alisa Melekhina with an honest look at how she is striving to improve her own ability when 'Converting Advantages' as this in area she has struggled with in the past.

Defending bad or worse positions is very important in the royal game, probably forming one of the most essential aspects of chess strategy altogether. And it is an art one can learn! The purpose of this DVD is to explain the viewer all main methods of defence: exchanging pieces, creating a fortress, eliminating dangerous enemy pieces, escaping the danger zone with the king, improving the position of the pieces. Special attention is paid to counterattack and prophylactic play.

Within this DVD the viewer will learn a great deal about Middlegame Pawn structures. Ivan looks at isolated pawns, symmetrical pawns and a vast array of other structures, whilst teaching us some valuable lessons. Ivan does this by first building up the position from its bare roots and then adding material, so each aspect of the position is understood.

International Master Bryan Smith explains Nimzo Indian Defense strategies with real games.
This hypermodern opening was developed by Grandmaster Aron Nimzowitsch who introduced it to master-level chess in the early 20th century. Unlike most Indian openings the NimzoIndian does not involve an immediate fianchetto, although Black often follows up with ...b6 and ...Bb7. By pinning White's knight Black prevents the threatened 4.e4 and seeks to inflict doubled pawns on White. White will attempt to create a pawn centre and develop his pieces to prepare for an assault on the Black position.

In the battle of chess ideas, the publication in 1991 of Dynamic Chess Strategy was a defining moment. Before Mihai Suba's exceptional book, chess writers had neglected one of the most important factors of a chess position: its dynamic potential. Suba demonstrated that the traditional concept of improving the position was often static and irrelevant, and that classical strategy, if applied dogmatically, can prevent you from finding the right plan and its subsequent moves.

In Strategic Play Jacob Aagaard digs deep into the most complex area of chess thinking. The games and exercises in this book transcend regular chess skills, such as pattern recognition, calculation and positional analysis. Building on the two previous books in the Grandmaster Preparation series, this book challenges the reader to explore the complexities of chess, offering clarity and understanding through Aagaard’s straightforward approach.

It is the imbalances in chess that make for really exciting games. Whether it be exchanging a knight for 2 pawns or your Queen for 3 minor pieces, you will be reaching far more positions with winning chances than players who miss these opportunities. Understanding how to change the nature of the game with piece imbalances shows real chess insight and creativity and this 3 ½ hour DVD from FM Alisa Melekhina is a comprehensive course on how to do just that.

Do you instinctively know what to do in every type of chess position or are you often uncertain about how to proceed? Wouldn't it be really useful to know the best chess strategies and to recognise when they should be used? In this book Sam Collins examines key games from both the classical and modern eras. He analyses the major strategic ideas that have stood the test of time and notes their considerable influence on his own games.

Sarkhan Guliev presents a wide range of strategic manoeuvres that have been repeatedly employed by great chess players. He shows how masters generate ideas from the games of other masters: positional sacrifices, amazing counterplay concepts, unorthodox exchanges, winning with h2-h4, overcoming a blockade, the advantages of double pawns, the e5 pawn wedge, the uses of the queen-bishop battery, and much more.

Maneuvering - The Art of Piece Play Finding the Best Squares for Your Pieces

Catalog Code: B0095RE

In this book, premier chess instructor and trainer Mark Dvoretsky examines one of the most important aspects of positional skill, namely the art of playing with pieces, of maneuvering and finding the best squares for your pieces.

GM Eugene Perelshteyn earned his third GM norm and the title GM after sharing first place in the 2006 Foxwoods Open, He won the Samford Chess Fellowship in 2002, awarded to the top American Player under 25 years old earning $64,000, Eugene also led the Unversity of Maryland, Baltimore County to a few Pan American championships from 1998-2002.

GM Jesse Kraai explains how to use the old Russian rule set to evaluate Tempo in chess. What is Tempi or Tempo in Chess? “The gaining or losing of time and effectiveness relative to one's continued mobility or developing position, especially with respect to the number of moves required to gain an objective: Black gained a tempo”.

Grandmaster Mihai Suba, a former Romanian champion and Senior World Chess Champion, has updated his groundbreaking work and extended it with even more entertaining and witty lessons. The result is a thought-provoking and yet practical guide on chess strategy!

In this instructive and entertaining book, Grandmaster Neil McDonald studies in depth the key components of successful rule-breaking in chess. Drawing upon his own experience and using examples from modern grandmaster chess, McDonald examines how to avoid stereotypical thinking, how to exploit typical thinking patterns, and how to confuse and beat opponents with surprising ideas.

In ''Using the Initiative'', Grandmaster Simon Williams explains the ideas behind his play in two of his games where the correct use of the initiative has proved critical. Follow Simon as he provides his audience with an essential insight into the working thought processes of a Grandmaster – a must for any chess enthusiast looking to improve!

More experienced players understand the power of the bishop. Bishops usually gain in relative strength towards the endgame as pieces are captured and more lines become available on the board. A bishop can easily influence both wings of the board simultaneously. In an open endgame, a pair of bishops is decidedly superior to either a bishop and a knight, or two knights. A player possessing a pair of bishops has a strategic weapon in the form of a long-term threat to trade down to an advantageous endgame.

The f4 Sicilian has become popular and feared because it avoids the frightening amount of knowledge required to play Open Sicilians. It is often not treated with the respect it deserves. The strategic aims are quite simple to understand: CHECKMATE. The first edition was written when the Grand Prix Attack was just becoming noticed by strong chess players. Now there are over 20,000 examples in the databases. Nevertheless, the opening remains based more on the ideas explained by authors Hodgson and Day than on “theory”.

This DVD consists of studying the strategic game, while acting as a guide for learning how Super GMs dominate positional chess. Over the course of these videos you will see master games explained in-depth by GM Lemos, placing emphasis on every move, explaining the motive and the distinct reasoning and thinking that causes GMs to make certain decisions.

Wilhelm Steinitz was an Austrian and then American chess player and the first undisputed world chess champion from 1886 to 1894. One of the most dominant players in the history of the game, Steinitz was unbeaten in over 25 years of match play.

This book, written by the hugely popular chess writer Andrew Soltis, is the only one that will help you up your game. He explains if you should exchange your bishop for a knight, which pair of bishops to exchange, when it's important to keep rooks on the board, and when to refuse any trade.